Even wielding gaudy MVP-worthy numbers along the way to stoking the Chiefs to a 5-0 start, quarterback Alex Smith typically had offered merely a wry smile when asked how much he was enjoying his breakthrough first few weeks and, in fact, revived reputation. Because at 33, he understands how fickle fortune can be — especially in the ever-churning NFL.
From literally the first seconds he was made the overall top pick in the 2005 NFL Draft by the dysfunctional San Francisco 49ers, Smith was cast into a volatile situation that came to inform his thinking.
The would-be savior had trouble getting traction for an organization in flux, an organization that cut him loose just as he was maturing.